Operation Manual

AUDIO BASICS
53
To send the sound of a device in the Rack to a specific output, you route the device output to the corresponding Out-
put jack on the Hardware Interface. This is done by using the patch cables on the back of the rack, as described in
“Manual routing”. If we flip the rack around, by pressing the [Tab] key, the Hardware Interface looks like this:
On the rear of the Hardware Interface, Inputs 1 and 2 are available but not connected,
Outputs 1 and 2 are available and connected, whereas Output 3 is connected but unavailable.
Audio quality
The audio quality in a computer based recording system depends on two things:
• The quality of the software calculating the audio.
In our case, this is the Reason DSP (Digital Signal Processing) code.
• The quality of the hardware audio interface used for recording and playing back the sound.
Software
• Reason uses 32-bit floating point arithmetic for all internal audio operations.
This ensures the highest possible audio quality throughout the entire signal chain.
• Reason supports 16, 20, and 24 bit resolution for input and output audio.
• Reason supports all standard sample rates between 44.1 kHz and 192 kHz.
Reason also supports lower sampling frequencies, but using a sample rate of less than 44.1 kHz is not recom-
mended since it might affect the audio quality negatively.
• A number of digital audio techniques that reduce the risk of “aliasing”, background noise, unwanted distortion
and “zipper noise” are implemented in Reason.
Audio hardware
How good a hardware audio interface actually sounds depends on a number of things; its frequency range and fre-
quency response curve, the resolution (bit depth), the signal to noise ratio, the distortion under various circumstances,
etc. Furthermore, some designs are more prone to disturbance from the other electronics in the computer than oth-
ers. Such disturbance might add hum or high pitched noise to the signal.
The only advice we can give is that if you are serious about sound, choose your audio hardware carefully!
Audio settings
Sample rate and resolution are properties of digital audio which determine the quality of the sound. Generally, higher
sample rate and resolution result in better audio quality (but also larger audio files and higher demands on computer
performance and audio hardware). The table below shows some common sample rate/resolution combinations:
To cater for all different situations, Reason supports multiple sample rates and resolutions.
|
Sample rate:
|
Resolution:
|
Comment:
44.1 kHz 16 bit This is the format used on standard audio CDs.
44.1 kHz –
192 kHz
24 bit These are formats used in professional studios and high-end recording
equipment.